482 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [JUNE 
Alaska on the Kenai peninsula in the vicinity of Cook inlet and 
perhaps elsewhere. Numbers 492 from Sunrise at the head of Turn- 
again arm and 664 from Kussiloff, on the western side of the penin- 
sula, 1897 and 1808. 
This apparently very distinct birch was first noticed by me in the 
summer of 1897 at Sunrise, a small mining camp near the head of 
Turnagain arm. It was seen at other places, usually associated with 
Picea Sitchensis and what was then considered Betula papyrifera, but 
the two birches seemed quite distinct. This tree is locally known as 
the red or black birch, and its rough bark and nearly unlaminated 
younger growth quickly distinguish it from the other species. In 
general appearance the trunk of an old tree bears a striking resem- 
blance to that of Prunus serotina. In 1898 I again visited this region 
and found this tree abundant at Kussiloff, about 50 miles from the 
mouth of Cook inlet and it was later observed elsewhere, seeming to 
indicate its general distribution over the Kenai peninsula, at least on 
its western side. The material from which this description has been 
drawn was compared with the collection of the National Herbarium 
and that of the Arnold Arboretum and was found very distinct. It 
was also compared with the collection at St. Petersburg and pro- 
nounced unlike any Siberian or other material in their possession. 
To those in charge of the above collections I wish to acknowledge my 
indebtedness.— WaLTeR H. Evans, Office of Experiment Stations, 
Dept. of Agric., Washington, D. C. 
a ee ee ee 
| 
j 
